"When I took on the challenge of turning around Cumulus Media in October 2015, it was a company in free fall: four straight years of declines in radio listenership, four straight years of revenue declines, three straight years of EBITDA declines, and underperforming acquisitions which had saddled the company with an untenable debt load. We also had lousy systems, crumbling infrastructure and unhappy employees who told us in surveys that the ‘dysfunctional,’ ‘toxic’ and ‘lousy’ culture was the primary reason for the company’s poor performance.
Berner writes "it was clear from the start that Cumulus would not be saved by any of the traditional turnaround quick fixes. The company had already made meaningful cost reductions. "With our heavy debt, any transformational M&A was also off the table. The market was not going to help—we started the turnaround just as headwinds in the radio industry started to pick up speed. Fixing Cumulus meant significantly improving basic business performance. The big unknown was whether our demoralized employees would step up to the plate.
"With almost 6,000 employees spread across radio stations in 90 markets, there had been almost no investment in rank-and-file employees, and turnover hovered around 50%. The company hadn’t given raises in over 10 years and some working conditions were almost unbelievable. I got a call a few days into my tenure complaining about the snakes that had fallen through the rotting ceiling in one of our offices. In contrast, top management received large and highly visible perks—travel on a private plane, hefty expense accounts and lavish offices.
"I knew that a disengaged workforce and high employee turnover made reversing the company’s downward spiral extremely difficult. So, I turned to a Culture Fix Playbook I had honed over time, and began to implement six must-do strategies."
In less than two years, Berner proudly announces, "Our culture has made a 180-degree turn. Employee turnover is down to 24%. Ninety-two percent of our employees say they are proud to work at Cumulus and 91% believe that Cumulus is changing for the better.
"What hasn’t changed is that we are still a resource-starved, over-leveraged company operating in a difficult market. However, as a direct result of our culture fix we showed our employees that we support and value them and they, in turn, are giving us their best effort.
"Now, we have a cultural competitive edge sharpened by engaged employees who fiercely believe they are a FORCE to be reckoned with."
Hubbard Radio St. Louis’ “live and local” New Country 92.3 WIL announces that Josh “JT” Holleman has been promoted to the Middays, effective September 20th.
JT Holleman came to New Country 92.3 last year from AMP/CBS Detroit to host nights on WIL. Program Director Scott Roddy notes, “JT’s work ethic, positivity, willingness to take direction and follow strategy - in concert with his amazingly fun and interactive sound - makes him PERFECTLY appealing to our young female demo!”
Roddy continues, “The New Country Home Team is vigorously dedicated to winning, and to each other. Josh is the most ‘comfortable in his own skin’ person I’ve ever known, and we are fortunate to have his talent here on the “Home Team!”
WIL 92.3 FM (100 Kw) Red=Local Coverage Area
With this move, Assistant Program Director and Music Director Danny Montana moves to the Evening time slot. Scott Roddy comments, “Danny’s position as APD/MD continues to evolve as the popularity of the Country format explodes in this ever-changing media landscape. This move will allow Danny’s duties and responsibilities to keep pace with that growth, which is key to New Country 92.3’s future success.”
U.S. TV stations’ total advertising revenues are estimated to record a 6.5% decline to $21.38 billion in 2017.
According to SNL Kagan, a unit of S&P Global Market Intelligence, this is somewhat expected, due to unfavorable comparisons to the year before, which saw higher political and Olympic TV advertising.
According to MediaPost, results are expected to show recovery next year -- rising 9.6% to $23.4 billion. Midterm political advertising and Olympic advertising sales are expected to contribute to the spike.
Through 2022, Kagan projects that TV stations will grow advertising revenues 3% on a compounded annual rate to $24.8 billion -- which includes linear TV advertising, both national and local, as well as digital TV advertising revenue.
Over the next five years, Kagan says, declines are expected to continue during off-Olympics and off-political years -- with a 5.3% decline in 2019 and a 6.3% pullback in 2021.
Going forward, TV stations’ linear TV advertising share is expected to continue to shrink as part of their total revenues. National and local spot ad revenues -- including political advertising -- will fall to a 59% share in 2022. It had been 94% of total TV station revenue in 2007, and 62% in 2017.
Radio station national ad revenues are expected to decline 3.0% in 2017, as the weakness carries further into the year and the industry absorbs the loss of political sales.
Local revenues could see a less pronounced decline of 2.0% in 2017 based on the firmer second quarter, with local auto dealers pushing inventory off the lot and better ad pacings later in the year driven by improving ad rates, with lower average-unit-rate political spots being displaced by higher-priced core advertising.
Kagan projects digital gains of 7.0% in 2017 to $1.18B from $1.10B in 2016, growing to $1.25B in 2018. Off-air has been another solid segment for the industry, gaining 8.5% to $2.41B and 6.0% growth in 2018 to $2.55B.
Over the next five years, Kagan expects to see radio station revenues increase gradually off a lower base as ad buying efficiencies improve through programmatic platforms and higher growth segments in digital/online and live events become a larger part of station revenue.
Radio's lower ad cost, local audience and relatively high return on investment compared to other media will also continue to generate business for station owners.
Between 2017 and 2022, SNLKagan expects radio station local and national spot ad revenues (including digital) in rated radio markets to increase at a compound annual rate of 0.9%, with non-rated markets declining at a negative CAGR of 0.9%. Total radio revenue, including national and local spot, digital, off-air and network revenue, is expected to grow at a five-year CAGR of 1.1% from an estimated $17.65B in 2017, reaching $18.60B by the end of 2022.
iHeartMedia/Las Vegas announced Wednesday that David Dean has been named Program Director for Country KWNR 95.5 The Bull effective immediately.
Dean will work closely with on-air personalities and sales to oversee the station brand’s on-air and digital programming, as well as local events and partnerships. He will report to Tony Matteo, Regional Senior Vice President for iHeartMedia Central California/Nevada.
“David brings tremendous experience and a winning track record to the 95.5 The Bull brand,” said Matteo. “The station has emerged as the market leader and Dean’s energy and passion will be a perfect fit to take it to the next level. He’ll thrive here in the Entertainment Capital Of The World.”
Dean joins 95.5 The Bull from New Orleans, where he most recently served as Program Director for 101.1 WNOE. He has also previously served as the Assistant Program Director for Q104.1 in Greensboro/Winston Salem, NC. He began his career at 98.1 The Bull in Lexington, KY.
KWNR 95.5 FM (100 Kw) Red=Local Coverage Area
“I’m excited and honored that the iHeartMedia Las Vegas team is giving me this amazing opportunity to help lead 95.5 The Bull.” said Dean. “Being able to work with 101.1 WNOE and the iHeartMedia New Orleans team has been an incredible three years but I’m looking forward to joining 95.5 The Bull and the team in Vegas. Viva Las Vegas!”
The Recording Industry Association of America’s midyear report shows the growth of streaming continues apace, with retail revenues up to $4 billion, 17% more than last year, while wholesale is up 14.6% to $2.7 billion.
With paid subscriptions rising to 30.4 million (up from 20.2 million in 2016), revenues from services like Spotify, Apple Music and Amazon are up to $1.7 billion, a rise of 61%, accounting for 43% of total revenue. Overall, streaming accounted for 62% of industry revenue, followed by digital downloads (19%), physical (16%) and synch rights (3%). Total value of digitally distributed formats in the first half of the year was $3.2 billion, up 21% from last year, contributing 84% of total industry value.
According to Variety, physical product shipments decreased just 1% to $632 million, with CD revenue down 3% to $431 million, while vinyl continued its resurgence, up 3% to $182 million, comprising 29% of total physical shipments at retail value, their highest share since the mid-‘80s, when CDs quickly became dominant.
Commenting on the results, RIAA Chairman/CEO Cary Sherman remarked, “Our story continues to be one of great promise, but our footing is fragile, and a sustained, durable recovery is jeopardized by a fundamentally uneven playing field.”
With paid digital downloads steadily decreasing ($757 million, down 24% from last year’s six-month report) to a mere 19% of industry revenues (down from $1.5 billion at the six month mark in 2013), Sherman cites the contributions of record labels in spreading streaming, partnering with more than 400 services worldwide, pointing to the investment of $4.5 billion in “discovering, nurturing and promoting artists.”
As the NFL kicks off Week 3 tonight with “Thursday Night Football,” team owners, TV networks and Madison Avenue are hoping it can turn around an early-season ratings dip, reports The NYPost.
Ratings in Weeks 1 and 2 were down 12 and 15 percent, respectively, according to Nielsen.
To be sure, saturation TV coverage of Hurricane Irma sapped some eyeballs from football during the first week of play.
Still, nine of the 13 NFL windows in the season-to-date posted viewership declines, Sports Media Watch reported.
“Week 2 might have still been disrupted by carryover impacts from the hurricanes that hit Houston and Florida,” UBS analyst Doug Mitchelson offered by way of explanation.
Jefferies analyst John Janedis drilled down further and estimated a 10-percent ratings drop for the season would cost game-carrying networks — CBS, ESPN, Fox, and NBC — $200 million in lost operating income.
So far, CBS has been the hardest hit in total viewers, a different measure than ratings points. Its two Sunday-afternoon games averaged 13.9 million viewers — down 10 percent from last year.
NBC’s three primetime games have averaged 22.1 million viewers — down 7 percent, while Fox’s four Sunday games — two in early afternoon and two in late afternoon — attracted 5 percent fewer viewers, as have ESPN’s broadcasts of “Monday Night Football.”
CBS RADIO has launched a new and improved version of its free streaming mobile app, Radio.com. The app features a fresh new look and logo to complement an easy-to-navigate experience now with higher streaming quality.
“Audiences want choice and that’s exactly what we’ve given them with this relaunch of the Radio.com app,” said J.D. Crowley, CBS RADIO’s Executive Vice President of Digital. “By combining their favorite local radio stations and on-demand content, we are catering to the distinctive tastes of mobile-first audiences, giving them control over when and where they engage with our content through a free, best-in-class experience.”
The Radio.com app allows users to listen to a live stream of their favorite local radio stations with the added capability of searching for other CBS RADIO stations by location or genre. Local stations and podcasts will auto populate at the top of the homepage, alongside content recommended specifically for each user. All of the company’s radio stations are available via Radio.com along with its diverse portfolio of more than 350 podcasts and popular programming from CBS Sports Radio. All content, whether live or on-demand, is always free.
J-D Crowley
The refreshed app also features customizable sections for a user’s stations and subscribed-to podcasts. The newly added “auto play” feature launches a user’s last played station upon re-opening the app. A dedicated podcast page allows users to subscribe to their favorites, and new episodes automatically download when a user’s device is connected to WiFi.
Station pages in the app are fully customized and feature local branding, on-air personalities, shows, on-demand audio, podcasts and schedules for an authentic listening experience. Music stations allow listeners to provide feedback on songs by tapping on thumbs up or thumbs down icons. The app also allows users to sync their mobile phones with Apple TV as well as their car’s Android Auto or Google CarPlay feature.
Through the use of dynamic advertising, partner messages are specific to the Radio.com app stream and targeted at individual listeners. Advertisers can also sponsor specific station pages or a group of stations by format (sports, news, country music, etc.).
Continued Crowley, “Through a combination of smart targeting and deep, custom integration opportunities for advertisers, we align our partners’ brands with our premium content so that listeners are both receptive and responsive to the advertising messages being delivered.”
National TV news viewing is still climbing year-to-date -- up 11%, although registering smaller gains in the most recent week.
For the most recent week ending September 17, the 38th week of the year, overall national TV news viewing grew by 5% on a Nielsen live-plus-same day basis among total viewers, according to Pivotal Research Group.
MediaPost reports viewing for the three biggest cable news networks continued to show major gains versus a year ago -- climbing 24% collectively.
MSNBC is the biggest beneficiary -- soaring 57% over a year ago. Fox News Channel viewing was 17% higher, and CNN has added 13%. Programming on the big three broadcast networks inched up 1% -- better than its 6% year-to-date decline.
Year to date, Fox now has a 30% share of all TV news viewing. All NBCUniversal news programming/networks -- including MSNBC -- are now at a 29% share. Time Warner -- including CNN -- is at a 20% share.
It’s been almost 4 months since Scott Pelley left the CBS Evening News anchor chair, and there’s still no sign that his permanent replacement will be announced anytime soon.
David Rubenstein, the billionaire financier and philanthropist, who also hosts a show on Bloomberg, had CBS Chairman Les Moonves on as a guest.
Rubenstein asked Moonves about the anchor vacancy. “We’re talking about what we’re going to do for the future,” Moonves said, adding, “Why don’t you buy CBS then you can put yourself in as the anchor.”
As of August 2017, two-thirds (67%) of Americans report that they get at least some of their news on social media – with two-in-ten doing so often, according to a new survey from Pew Research Center.
This is a modest increase since early 2016, when (during the height of the presidential primaries) 62% of U.S. adults reported getting news from social media. While a small increase overall, this growth is driven by more substantial increases among Americans who are older, less educated, and nonwhite. This study is based on a survey conducted August 8-21, 2017, with 4,971 U.S. adults who are members of Pew Research Center’s nationally representative American Trends Panel.
For the first time in the Center’s surveys, more than half (55%) of Americans ages 50 or older report getting news on social media sites. That is 10 percentage points higher than the 45% who said so in 2016. Those under 50, meanwhile, remain more likely than their elders to get news from these sites (78% do, unchanged from 2016).
Furthermore, about three-quarters of nonwhites (74%) get news on social media sites, up from 64% in 2016. This growth means that nonwhites1 are now more likely than whites to get news while on social media. And social media news use also increased among those with less than a bachelor’s degree, up nine percentage points from 60% in 2016 to 69% in 2017. Alternatively, among those with at least a college degree, social media news use declined slightly.
Premiere Networks Sports radio host Clay Travis said Wednesday he will consider running for Senate in Tennessee as an independent if incumbent Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) does not seek reelection in 2018, according to The Hill.
“I think I could get elected,” Travis said on his Fox Sports radio show “Outkick the Coverage.”
“There has to be no incumbent and Peyton Manning has to not run. Other than that I think I could beat anyone in the state,” he added, referring to the NFL legend, who played football at the University of Tennessee.
Travis’s national profile has increased dramatically in recent days. He has long been a critic of ESPN, alleging that the sports cable network has been infusing its coverage with left-wing politics.
That thrust him onto the national stage last week after ESPN anchor Jemele Hill was rebuked by the White House for calling President Trump a white supremacist.
Travis was a go-to pundit for the controversy and received further coverage after saying on CNN that the only things he believes in are “the First Amendment and boobs.”
Corker has not said yet whether he will seek reelection. If he does, pro-Trump outside groups and allies of former White House chief strategist Stephen Bannon have said they'll be looking to recruit a primary challenger to run against him.
He said he might not run because he makes more money as a sports radio host than he would as a senator.
Former Fox News host Bill O'Reilly warned the network's incoming prime-time star, Laura Ingraham, on Wednesday the Left will likely "come after you" because cable news was a "hateful arena."
"I have to warn you — for 20 years of my life, while I was on the Fox News Channel, I was attacked personally every single day. You will be, too," O'Reilly said on "The Laura Ingraham Show."
Bill O'Reilly
"They have millions of dollars to spend to destroy me and to try to destroy Sean Hannity, who was smart enough to fight back. They're going to come after you."
According to The Washington Examiner, O'Reilly, who was ousted from Fox News in April after it became public knowledge that he and the network settled five sexual harassment lawsuits for $13 million, also addressed earlier comments he made to Hannity on his radio program Tuesday about whether he would return to the channel.
"I have to make a decision: Do I want to come back into this hateful — and that's the word — hateful arena where the truth doesn't matter?" O'Reilly said. "Now, will I come back on conventional television? The deal has to be right. The time has to be right. So I'm taking being patient for once in my life because it's so hateful, Laura."
O'Reilly was with Fox News for more than two decades, with his show "The O'Reilly Factor" becoming one of the most watched programs on cable.
"The Ingraham Angle" — the name of her old segment on O'Reilly's show — is set to debut at 10 p.m. on Oct. 30., moving "Hannity" into the earlier time slot of 9 p.m.
➦In 1907...actor Jack Mather was born in a northern suburb of Chicago. Early in his career he was a regular actor on the NBC radio anthology series “First Nighter,” and when it moved to Hollywood (1946) he went with it. He played the lead role in “The Cisco Kid” on Mutual radio (MBS) from 1947-56, and went on to many supporting roles in early TV on such shows as “Bonanza,””Dragnet,” “Maverick,” “M-Squad” and “Death Valley Days.” He suffered a fatal heart attack Aug. 15th 1966 and died at age 58.
➦In 1941..."The Second Mrs. Burton" premiered on the CBS Radio Network.
➦In 1943...WNYC-FM call letters debut.
WNYC began regularly scheduled broadcasts on the FM band on March 13, 1943 at 43.9 megacycles. Known originally as W39NY, the FM outlet adopted its present WNYC-FM identity and its present frequency of 93.9 MHz within a few years.
➦In 1948..."Life With Luigi" debuted on the CBS Radio Network.
➦In 1965..KYW 1060 AM in Philadelphia flipped to an all-news format.
KYW began in 1921 in Chicago, Illinois. It was jointly owned by Westinghouse Electric Corporation and Commonwealth Edison. Westinghouse later bought out ComEd's share and became sole owner of the station. In 1927, Westinghouse aligned its four radio stations (KYW, KDKA in Pittsburgh, WBZ in Boston and WBZA in Springfield, Massachusetts) with the NBC Blue Network, which originated from former sister station WJZ (the present-day WABC) in New York City. Westinghouse had been a founding partner of the Radio Corporation of America (RCA), NBC's original parent company.
On September 21, 1965, shortly after Westinghouse regained control of 1060 AM, the newly rechristened KYW once again dropped its NBC radio affiliation and was converted into one of the first all-news stations in the country. Newsman Steve Porter read the first newscast. It had been edited by Fred B. Walters, the former Harrisburg bureau chief and eventual Executive Editor.
Five months earlier Westinghouse Broadcasting converted WINS, KYW's New York sister station since 1962, from a Top-40 format to all-news. A similar move was made three years later at another Westinghouse-owned station, KFWB in Los Angeles. KYW has been one of the highest-rated radio stations in the country since that point and has been the market leader in Philadelphia for much of that time. The Westinghouse all-news trio, meanwhile, revolutionized and defined the all-news format. KYW's early format elements were shared with WINS, such as the distinctive teletype sound effect playing in the background, and the slogans "All News, All the Time", "The Newswatch Never Stops", "Listen 2, 3, 4 Times a Day" and "You Give Us 22 Minutes, We'll Give You the World".
KYW's present format runs on a 30-minute cycle.[20] Regular segments include contains traffic and mass transit reports from Metro Traffic every ten minutes on the "twos" (six times an hour), sports updates every quarter-hour (twice an hour, at :15 and :45), weather reports as much as six times an hour (four regularly scheduled reports at :07, :14, :37 and :44 past every hour with breaking weather news plus special forecasts for the New Jersey Shore and the Poconos), and business news from Bloomberg twice an hour (at :25 and :55). When breaking news warrants, KYW will break format to provide continuous coverage of any event.
Its television sister took advantage of the radio station's popularity by incorporating a version of KYW's musical sounder into its news themes from 1991 to 2003. In addition, a television program entitled KYW Newsradio 1060 This Morning aired from 5 to 8 a.m. on sister station WPSG (channel 57) in the early 2000s, adapting KYW's "clock" to television. The show was popular among local cable programming in its daypart, and in late 2004 was usurped (due in part to a new affiliation to Traffic Pulse) by television staffers and assumed the name Wake UPNews.
Westinghouse Electric announced its purchase of CBS in 1995, and upon its completion KYW became a sister station to its long-time rival, CBS-owned WGMP (1210 AM, now WPHT). That station, under its original WCAU call letters, attempted to compete with KYW in all-news programming during the late 1970s but failed, dumping the format after only three years.
KYW is currently the easternmost station in the United States whose callsign begins with the letter K. It is also one of three such stations in Pennsylvania, the other ones being KQV and sister station KDKA, both in Pittsburgh.
➦In 1968...The Crazy World of Arthur Brown roared up the chart from 60 to 15 with "Fire".
➦In 1968...Harry Harrison does last show at WMCA 570 AM. He's headed 77 WABC
From '65...
➦In 1970...Bob Grant does first show at WMCA 570 AM as WMCA flips from Top40 to Talk.
➦In 1985...The Album Charts...Dire Straits continued to hold on to #1 on the album chart with Brothers in Arms. Sting was stuck at 2 with The Dream of the Blue Turtles while Tears For Fears owned #3--Songs From the Big Chair. Bruce Springsteen was in his 66th week with Born in the U.S.A. and Bryan Adams' Reckless was still at #5 after 44 weeks of release.
The rest of a great Top 10: Phil Collins and No Jacket Required, Billy Joel with Greatest Hits, Volume I & Volume II, Whitney Houston's debut at #8, the self-titled Heart at 9 and Motley Crue was bringing up the rear with Theatre of Pain.
➦In 2012...radio/TV actor/announcer Rye Billsbury, aka Michael Rye, died at age 94.
He had continuing roles in network radio’s Ma Perkins, The Guiding Light, Backstage Wife and Jack Armstrong the All-American Boy, to name just a few of the Chicago and LA originations on his resume. In TV he is perhaps best remembered as the cartoon voice of The Lone Ranger (1966-69), with other voice roles on Skyhawks, Adventures of the Gummi Bears, Super Friends, and scores of Hanna-Barbera and Disney cartoons.
After 45-years of doing a morning show on St. Louis radio, longtime market fixture Guy Phillips has decided it's time for a change.
Phillips announced on his show this morning that he is departing CBS Radio's HotACX KYKY 98.1 FM Y98 in November.
Starting January 2018 he's expecting to to host an afternoon show on Talk KTRS 550 AM.
Phillips started in STL radio in 1979 with the old KSLQ, which became KYKY in 1982. Since 1979, Phillips has been the cornerstone of morning radio at 98.1 FM in St. Louis, bringing listeners his fun guest interviews and interesting takes on local and national events.
Phillips will take over the afternoon slot that had been ruled for years by Frank O. Pinion, sources said. Pinion, whose real name is John Craddock, will join the staff at KFNS-AM 590 on Oct. 2.
In July, Pinion announced his resignation from KTRS by saying it was "not amicable." He had worked at the talk-radio station for 20 years.
Earlier this year Phillips and CBS Radio agreed to a long-term contract extension. At that time, Phillips stated, “I’ve been one of the luckiest guys to ever work in this business. I have had steady employment over five decades in St. Louis and I haven’t once failed to laugh, on the air and off, on any of those days."
In 2006, he was among an elite class elected to the St. Louis Radio Hall of Fame, all of whom were nominated by the Hall’s board of directors and voted on by local media.
Phillips remains one of the most sought-after event emcees in the area. He lends himself to many charitable organizations and donates hundreds of hours of service in the metro area. St. Patrick’s Center, Central Institute for the Deaf, and Ronald McDonald House Children’s Charities are just a few of the many charitable organizations he supports. Phillips is also a board member of the Derrik S. Sabada Memorial Scholarship Fund, the St. Louis Men’s Group Against Cancer, Friends of Kids with Cancer, and Cinema St. Louis.
Phillips’ commitment to the industry goes well beyond the boundaries of St. Louis. Within the past two years, he has established a scholarship at his alma mater, New Mexico State University, for students pursuing excellence in a broad range of media, including radio, with the “Guy Phillips Media Endowed Scholarship Fund.” Phillips’ wish is to provide the university financial assistance in perpetuity for need-based students to follow their dreams.
